The removal of unwanted hair from the body can be accomplished with mechanized means, for example razors, tweezers or wax, all of which are uncomfortable to use, irritate the skin and/or cause damage to the skin.
The use of heated wires or other structures to cut hair from a skin surface has been proposed. However, a heat generator that generates heat of a sufficient magnitude to cut hair and is offset from the skin to prevent skin damage, often leaves behind unwanted stubble.
In Peterson, U.S. Pat. No. 3,934,115, parallel metal strips on the upper side of ceramic facing that contacts the skin, are used to cut hair. Hills, in U.S. Pat. No. 2,727,132 and P. Massimo in IT 1201364, use a continuously heated element to burn hair. P. M. Bell in U.S. Pat. No. 558,465, D. Seide in U.S. Pat. No. 0,589,445, G. S. Hills in U.S. Pat. No. 2,727,132, G. L. Johnson in U.S. Pat. No. 3,093,724, Hashimoto in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,064,993 and 6,307,181 B1, F. Solvinto in FR 2531655 and EP 0201189, and E. Michit in 2612381, use a continuously heated wire to burn hair. J. F. Carter in U.S. Pat. No. 3,474,224, provides a circular comb device for burning nose hairs. These references do not appear to provide a means of reducing the hairs to the level of the skin.
Vrtaric, in U.S. Pat. No. 4,254,324, provides a heat hair cutting system that is applied only to the tips of the hair to remove the split ends.
Iderosa, in U.S. Pat. No. 5,065,515, describes a heating element that preheats hair before cutting it with a blade coupled to the heating element. However, since the heating element is permanently in contact with the skin, it is believed that its temperature is limited to a temperature which does not damage the skin, for continuous exposure and which is not uncomfortable for the user.
The present applicants have disclosed a heat-generating system for cutting hair in PCT publications WO 03/009977 and WO 03/009976. The disclosures of these applications are incorporated herein in their entirety by reference. These applications describe methods and devices in which a wire providing pulsed or non-pulsed heat is used to cut hair. As used herein, a heat-generating wire refers to one or more of: metal wires, ribbons or any other type of heat-generating elements capable of generating heat of sufficient magnitude and/or duration to cut hair from an area of skin. In general, all of the configurations of wires, etc. disclosed in either of the above referenced applications are applicable to the present invention. In addition, the structures and methods described herein are usable in or in conjunction with the structures disclosed therein.
In the above referenced PCT applications, the hair is severed close to the skin by heating the hair. This severing of the hair may also destroy at least a portion of the hair below the skin. As used herein the term “cut” is used to describe this type of severing or shaving of the hair.